Portable conveyer



Jan. 17, 1939. J. c. BUCKBEE 2,144,360

" I PORTABLE; GONVEYER- Filed June 5, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet l ATTORNEY Jan. 17, 1939. Y I J. c. BUCKBEE 2,144,360

' PORTABLE CONVEYER Filed June 5, 1935 2 Sheets-Shet 2 WA :\TW

INVENTOR. I f 6 Baa/{166e,

Patented Jan. 17, 1939 p v y I UNITED STATES PATENT FFE 1 2,144,360 PORTABLE CONVEYER John Calvin Buckbee, Los Angeles, Calif. Application June 5,1935, Serial No. 25,063

1 Claim. (01. 198-233) This invention relates to conveyers and has drive the conveyer through a succession of pulparticular reference to improvements in portable leys B. Y

batch belt conveyers. The conveyor frame 3 is, in Fig. 1, shown ris- The present invention is capable of adaptation ing diagonally to a. position for convenient dis- 5 to many purposes. But, as it is primarily incharge into the intake opening of a mixing truck 5 tended for use in connection with the prepara- A, such as commonly employed in large concrete tion of concrete mixtures, the following is a deconstruction operations. The housing '5 is shown scription of a device particularly adapted for mounted at the bottom of this rising frame pork such use. tion, and it is noticed that the frame extends The general object of the invention is to prohorizontally beyond the housing, substantially as 10 vide a conveyer which may readily be transported indicated at 3 to form a level base upon which from place to place and which, upon arrival at its the receiving end of the conveyer firmly rests. destination, may quickly be set up and adjusted Hoppers are provided at this inner end of the p for operation. frame, one of which, designated by the numeral It is a further object of the invention to pro- 9, is shaped to receive the aggregates which usual- 15 vide convenient means for receiving the various 1y are carried to the conveyer in dump trucks materials which combine to form the concrete fitted to discharge predetermined batches of the mixture and to direct such materials to the belt material into this hopper. A second hopper ID, of the conveyer. is shown directly in front of a splashboard 9% Another object is the provision of means for of the first hopper, and the bottoms of both 20 delivering correctly measured quantities of water hoppers are shaped with spouts directed to deto the materials discharged from the conveyer. posit the materials on the conveyor belt.

Other objects of the invention reside in the At each side of the frame, and extending alongparticular means of adjusting the structure for side the space occupied by the hoppers and the operation and of readjusting the device for transhousing, is a platform, ll, l2, which platforms 25 portation,all of which will be made evident hereserve as storing spaces for bags of cement. When inafter. I the device is in operation, it is customary to sta- Referring to the drawings, in which apreferred tion a man on each platform to open the bags form of the invention is shown, and to discharge the cement into the hopper Hi Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a conveying device in predetermined proportion to the aggregates 3o embodying the invention as it appears in posidumped into the hopper 9. So long as these tion for operation, parts having been broken away platforms are kept supplied with cement bags, it for the sake of clearness, s r is seen that the device of my invention is capable Fig. 2 is a substantially corresponding side of continuous operation and that the operating View of the device, showing the conveyer adjusted capacity of the device is limited only to the 35 and fitted for transportation, and, speed with which delivery and receiving trucks Fig. 3 is a partial end elevation of the struccan be exchanged. And when each truck is imture in the position illustrated in Fig. 1. mediately followed by another, the dwell between The numeral denotes a conveyer which is operations is merely sufiicient for the men on the held supported on series of rollers 2 the rollers platforms m Open the bags ready for discharge 40 of each series being inclined toward the centerv into" hopperof the belt to provide in the belt a gutter for Await P 15 shown mounted on the frame better conveying the materials, all as usual in near discharge l of the cqnveyer" and it start-tar ar t a- .5 4 I 1 1e 0 wet er in o -e mixing ruc ix; z g 3 i sgg g g g g g m g i zgggg A valve I3 is placed near the discharge end of this pipe, and within easy reach of the driver of the provided for driving the conveyer properly to adtruck, for Controlling the supply of Water "ance discharge the j AS quired with each batch of dry mixture delivered veyer dr1v1ng mechanisms of various types are to the mixing truck v commercially well known, such mechanism 15 here Dump trucks employed to carry aggregates for merely Indicated by a housing 6, wlthln w c making concrete usually are divided into comsuitable driving mechanisms are installed. Abelt partments, each holding an equal quantity of l is shown extending from the D plant of the material, and fitted with gates permitting the this housing to illustrate connecting means to discharge of one batch at a time. With each 55 batch of aggregates, a proportionate number of bags of cement is dumped on to the conveyer, and

it is furthermore necessary that a proportionate aperture. Each cock is positioned to represent the surface of a given volume of water. When therefore the quantity of the dry material in each batch is determined, it is only necessaryto open the cock representing the volume of a correct proportion of water, permitting thereby any excess of water to waste through this open cock. A pipe, carrying water under pressure, should beprovided to replenish the water supply within the tank. .The valve l3 may, if desired, be of the three-way type, in one position to connect the tank with the supply pipe and in the other to discharge the water from the tank into the mixing truck. Or any other suitable arrangement may be substituted, the important point being to pro vide means capable of refilling the tank while a batch of material is advanced on the conveyer, in combination with means. for limiting the contents of the tank to be discharged to a predetermined volume.

The weight of the power housing 6 and of the hoppers is sufiicient to maintain the device firmly in operative position, as shown in Fig. 1. To facilitate transportation, however, the conveyer is shown mounted on a wheel truck 20, the wheel axle of which serves as a. fulcrum on. which the conveyer may be swung into-the horizontal position indicated in Fig. 2. The outer end of the conveyer is fitted with elements, such as a roller 2!, which rests on a plate 23 of a'hauling truck 22, when the conveyer is in transit. A draw bar 24, which at one end is shown pivotally mounted on the conveyer frame, is thereupon hitched-on to the truck for transferring the'device to'a new location.

Because of the great weight of the power mechanism and of the hoppers, it is not so easy to swing the conveyer into horizontal position. Nor would the device be well balanced in this position, as a consequence of which the strain, during transportation, might be sufficient to cause a break in-the connections or at least to result in damage to the device as well as prove inconvenient in turning street corners because of the long rear overhang. In order to correct this condition, I

have provided means for adjusting the conveyer lengthwise on the wheel truck 20. This adjustment is shown effected by turning a hand crank- 32, the shaft of which carries a worm 3B, and this worm meshes with a wormwheel 3|, all of which elements are mounted on the frame Zil of the wheel truck. A rackbar 33 is shown fastened to the underside of the conveyer frame and it is in mesh with a gear wheel 34, which in turn is mounted to rotate with the wormwheel 3|.

the outer side edges of the platforms.

By turning this crank, it is possible to advance the conveyer on the wheel truck and thereby to balance the device on the truck as best suited to hauling conditions. It is advisable to introduce antifrictio-n rollers 35, 36, between the truck body and the conveyer frame, in order to facilitate this adjustment. These devices: are, however, merely illustrative of simple means of balancing the conveyer on the wheel truck, as best suited to operating and transportation conditions, and more elaborate means may be employed in practice.

'It is advisable to provide a support to carry the weight of the filled water tank and also to reduce the weight on the wheel truck 20, and such support is here shown to consist of an ordinary A-frame'28, pivotally mounted on the conveyer frame andprovided with adjustable fee-t 29 to accommodate the support to unevennesses of the ground surface on which the device is stationed.

This support may be folded up against the conveyer frame during transportation, substantially as shown in Fig. 2.

The sidewise overhanging platforms I I, I2,

which are so indispensable to the convenient and economical use of the device, would hinder transportation along public highways, if not to make it so expensive as. to render its transportation commercially impossible. But, by pivotally mounting these platforms on the conveyer frame, it is. possible to fold them alongside the conveyer frame, like drop leaves of a table, when not in use. To this end, I have shown the platforms hung on hinges H I2 and a series of supports, or legs 38, 39 are pivotally mounted along These legs are, when the conveyer is to be moved, first folded against'the underside: of vtheplatforms, as indicated in Fig. 3, to permit the latter to drop into the position indicated in dotted outline. Each leg is conveniently fitted with an adjustable foot 40, better to accommodate the legs to a rough and uneven ground surface. From the foregoing description, the objects and advantages of the invention should be clear tothose versed in the art. While I have described means for conveying concrete materials, I do not wish to be limited in this particular. Nor do I confine myself to abelt conveyer or to the limiting phrases hereinbefore employed, but reserve right to such modifications as come within the scope of the appended claim.

I claim:

A portable conveyer comprising, a wheel truck, a conveyer lengthwise adjustable on said truck to tilt the conveyer into operating position, a pivot on the underside of said conveyer, a frame on'said pivot movable into engagement with the ground for supporting the overhanging portion of the conveyer, a draw-bar on said pivot for attachment to a hauling vehicle, a roller on the end of the conveyer for contact with the hauling vehicle to eliminate. friction due to relative movement of the conveyer and the vehicle, and means on the conveyer for holding said frame and the said draw-bar folded close to the conveyer when not in use.

JOHN CALVIN BUCKBEE. 

